Gut bugs and drugs

We normally think of antibiotics affecting our gut bacteria, but German and Japanese scientists say almost one in four other commonly prescribed drugs could also affect how the bugs in our belly grow. The team tested more than 1000 drugs against 40 types of gut bacteria and found many, including anti-diabetics, non-steroidal anti-inflammatories and anti-psychotics, stopped at least one type of bacteria from growing, despite the drugs being designed to work on human cells rather than bacteria.

Nature March 2018

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